Computer device(s) performing network communications over wireless links are becoming increasingly popular. Conventionally, when a user comes within range of a wireless network, the client device (e.g., computer system) is able to discern two pieces of information about that network, without connecting to it (e.g., from the wireless network beacon): (1) the service set identifier (SSID) of the network (e.g., essentially its name); and, (2) whether or not the network encrypts data. If the network employs encryption, an encryption key is required. The encryption key can be manually entered by the user and/or sent in accordance with the 802.1x protocol.
With the information that the client device can retrieve from the wireless network beacon, the client device can generally determine whether the network is of type unencrypted, encrypted or, with the addition of a Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) information element, encrypted using WPA-pre-shared key or encrypted using WPA. If it is unencrypted, then a user needs only to acknowledge that the network is insecure, and that they wish to use it in spite of that information. However, if it is encrypted and does not use WPA, then it either requires the user to enter a WEP key or it is an 802.1x-enabled network which distributes the WEP key automatically (requiring the client computer to enable 802.1x authentication to complete the connection).
Since the client computer cannot tell whether the non-WPA encrypted network requires the user to enter a WEP key or is an 802.1x-enabled network which does not support WPA, it typically requests input from the user. In the vast majority of cases, the user is in no position, from a technical knowledge perspective, to answer such a request.